Lost and Found
by dietcocacola101
Summary: Albus Potter was kidnapped when he was thirteen and Harry never stopped searching for him. Six years later, Harry gets a call from Albus who asks to be brought home. Albus's family is happy to have him home and he's happy to be home but Harry thinks that Al isn't as okay as he seems. Harry makes it his mission to find out what Al is hiding about what happened during those six years
1. Chapter 1

**Lost and Found**

When Harry Potter arrived home from his quick visit to Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour with two chocolate cones, he had expected to see Albus Severus exactly as he had left him: sitting on the steps of Grimmauld Place with a book and a root beer. Instead, he approached an empty porch with a closed novel and a warm soda.

Harry felt a flicker of annoyance. He had clearly told Albus to wait for him outside so they wouldn't drip ice cream on the carpet. He cast a Hovering Charm on the ice cream cones and left them in midair, hovering over Albus's book. One of the cones dripped chocolate ice cream onto his bookmark.

He opened the door to his house and called out his younger son's name and got no response. He tried again bellowing "ALBUS!" but again, was greeted with silence. Harry searched every nook and cranny of this house for a thirteen-year-old boy, but couldn't find Albus anywhere. He felt himself start to panic. Albus was clumsy and forgetful and often didn't use his head, but he would never just take off without telling anyone.

Harry knocked on every door in the neighborhood and asked if anyone had seen Al. "He looks just like me, except he only comes up to about here and he doesn't wear glasses," he explained. "Have you seen him? Have you seen anything suspicious?" His heart sank more and more every time someone said they hadn't seen him and shut the door in his face. He was hysterical by the time he ran home and was in tears when he ordered the house elf to check all of Albus's friends' and cousins' houses to see if he was there.

Ginny, James, and Lily were spending the day at Ron and Hermione's, but came home straight away when Cora (the house elf) Apparated into the kitchen and asked if Albus was there because Harry couldn't find him. James and Lily weren't too concerned because Harry tended to overreact whenever one of his kids was out of his sight for more than a few seconds. They quickly discovered that the situation was serious, however, when Harry called in an entire Auror department and Ginny had to excuse herself several times so her kids wouldn't see her cry.

The news that Albus Severus Potter was missing spread through the Wizarding World like wildfire. It was all over the _Daily Prophet_ and Harry knew people were whispering about it when he walked by. He knew they must be saying exactly what he thought about every day.

"It's my fault," he had said to Ginny the first night Albus went missing. She had just come back down to the kitchen after tucking James and Lily into bed.

"Of course it isn't. Why would you say that?" she asked and pushed a cup of coffee towards him.

"I left him alone. I shouldn't have gone. Or I should have made him come with me. I should have done _something._"

Ginny hadn't been angry with him and he couldn't figure out why. If he had only kept a better eye on Albus, she would have tucked three children into bed that night, not two. Nearly crazed with grief, Harry put all of his time and money into trying to find Albus. It was all that mattered.

"It is _not_ all that matters," Ginny snapped when he confided in her over Christmas vacation. At that time, Albus had been missing for roughly six months. "I want to find Al as badly as you do, but you have other children, Harry. Did you know that James decided to be a Chaser this year instead of a Seeker? Lily has been back from her first year at Hogwarts for _days_ and you haven't once asked her about it!"

Harry sighed in defeat. She was right. Of course she was right.

Harry went back to doing regular things. He went to parties and dinners with Ginny and went to James's Quidditch matches and helped Lily with her homework. When he laughed at George or Ron's jokes, his laugh was genuine. Sometimes he felt okay, but mostly it was torture having to pretend everything was fine when everything felt wrong. What was even worse was having to pretend he was fine when he felt empty inside.

He was no stranger to the pain of losing a loved one, but had never experienced anything like this. Not that the others hadn't meant the world to him – they had – but losing a child is different. Not knowing what had happened to him was worse.

Two years ticked by and Harry was no closer to finding Albus than he was on the first day he went missing. He began to lose hope that he would ever see his son alive again. Just thinking about it was unbearable, but what was even more awful was when, one year later on the day of his graduation, James voiced this thought.

"Dad, I think Albus is dead," he said when Ginny and Lily went out to pack up the car. "I think he's been dead this whole time."

For a moment, Harry couldn't breathe. By the look on his son's face, he could tell that James was expecting him to yell and get angry, but he just sighed.

"So do I."

"What?" James asked, appalled. "But you've been going nuts looking for him!"

Harry sighed and took off his glasses to clean them. He avoided looking at James for a few moments until he put them back on. "Don't you want to find out what happened to him? I'm going crazy not knowing."

"Yeah, me too," James admitted. Harry faked a smile and clapped him on the back.

"We'll talk about this later, okay? Right now let's focus on getting you graduated."

"I would enjoy it more if Al was here," James said.

"Me too," Harry agreed, sadly, and they walked out to the car together.

More years went by and no one in the Weasley-Potter clan believed that Albus was still alive, not even Harry. But still, he kept looking. One night when he and Ginny were watching old family videos from when James, Al, and Lily were small children, and he was looking at Albus's small, smiling face and was suddenly more angry than he had ever been. Why would anyone want to hurt anything so innocent and pure?

"He really did look just like you, Harry," Ginny said, quietly, and squeezed his hand. She had been so strong during everything, much stronger than he had.

"I'm going to find his killer," Harry said. "It's all I can think about."

More or less, it was true. It became a little easier for Harry to enjoy himself but even as he did other things like have a beer with old friends or spending time with his family, Albus was always in the back of his mind.

Right when Harry hit another dead end on his search for Al, he received the phone call that he had been waiting for for six years.

The Wizarding World had always been oddly behind Muggles when it came to technology. Right now Muggles were using touch screen smart phones the size of Harry's palm and he still owned a landline with cords and a phone in every room. So naturally, when the phone rang at three in the morning, Harry had to answer it quickly or he'd wake the whole house up.

"Hello?" Harry murmured, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

"Dad?" a familiar voice asked. Being half asleep, Harry assumed it was his elder son.

"James? What is it this time?" Ever since James had moved out two years ago, he continually called the house and asked for spending money and for Ginny to do his laundry. Most of the time Harry could tolerate it, but not in the middle of the night.

"No, Dad, it's Albus," the voice said.

Harry sat straight up in bed, wide awake now. He knew that voice was familiar in a way he couldn't quite put his finger on. Albus's shy, quiet voice was deeper now, but it was still his voice.

"Albus?" he repeated, breathlessly. He just wanted to make sure he had heard correctly.

"Yeah, it's me," Al said. "Can you come get me?"


	2. Chapter 2

"Yes. Yes, I most definitely can," Harry said and reached over and violently shook Ginny awake. "Where are you?"

"I-I don't know. I'm in a house. I don't know the address," Albus stammered.

"Check the mail."

"O-Okay."

Harry sat up, the phone still tucked under his ear, to put his shoes on. A very irritated Ginny sat up in bed next to him and said, "For Merlin's sake, Harry! What is it? Who's on the phone?"

"Albus," he whispered.

"What?"

"_Albus is on the phone,_" he hissed.

"_Our_ Albus? For how long? Is he okay? Where is he?" she demanded to know.

"I'm working on that part," Harry answered and then spoke into the phone, "Al? Did you find the mail?"

"Um, yeah. 717 Coral Street is the address," Albus replied.

Ginny was violently shaking _him_ now. "What's he saying?" she inquired. "Let me talk to him! Harry, give me the phone!"

"Okay, Al, I'm going to get dressed and then I'll come get you straight away. I'll be there in five minutes. I'm going to give the phone to your mother and I want you to sit on the porch and talk to her until I get there. All right?"

"Yes, sir."

"Okay, here's Mum. I'll see you in a bit, Albus. I love you," Harry said and handed the telephone over to a very eager Ginny. He crossed the room and rummaged through his wardrobe for a clean shirt and pants. As he wrenched a Chudley Cannons t-shirt over his head, he heard Ginny talking into the phone:

"Hi, Albus, it's Mum. – How are you? Are you hurt? – Oh good. Listen, Dad is going to be there very soon and he's going to bring you home. – I missed you too, sweetie. So much. – Don't cry, Al, everything is going to be okay now…"

Harry yanked on a fresh pair of pants, rammed his glasses onto his face, grabbed his wand off the nightstand, and disappeared with a _crack!_

He stumbled and nearly fell on his ass when he reached his destination. Harry wasn't very fond of Apparation and hardly used it as his first choice for transportation, so he was rusty. He looked around, wildly, and noted that he was standing under a street sign that read: _Coral Street._

"Shit!" he cried. He hadn't concentrated hard enough. Now where was 717 Coral Street?

Harry ran forward, following the numbers on the houses. 707, 709, 711, 713, 715…_there._ 717 Coral Street. But more importantly, Albus was sitting on the front porch with a cordless telephone pressed against his ear. Harry ran towards the person he had been waiting to see for six years, but when he was yards away, close enough that Harry and his son locked eyes, he stopped in his tracks.

He had expected hugs and tears and to marvel at how much older and taller Albus was now, but all of that was forgotten as soon as Harry was close enough to see.

"Albus, why are you covered in blood?" he asked.

Perhaps "covered" was a harsh word. It was more like splashes of blood decorated Albus's body, as if blood was the paint and his body was the canvas.

"Mum, Dad's here," Albus said into the phone, his eyes never leaving Harry's. "I'll see you soon. Goodbye. I love you, too." He hung up the phone.

"Why are you covered in blood?" Harry repeated.

"It's not mine," Al replied. "It's…it's _his_ blood. The man who abducted me."

"Why is it all over you?"

"He had this…baseball bat. I think he was going to use it to knock me out, but I took it from him and I-I killed him with it," Albus explained and started to cry. Harry noticed that he was shivering and silently cursed himself for not thinking to bring a coat to give to him. He walked up the steps and sat down next to his son, who he put a comforting arm around.

"You did what you had to do to get away. Your abductor was a horrible man and you killed him in self-defense," he whispered and at the same time, wasn't sure why he was whispering, but it felt right. He squeezed Albus's shoulder and gestured to the house. "Are you ready to get out of here?"

Albus nodded and, when he looked back at the house, shuddered. He turned away from Harry and wiped away his tears. Harry was suddenly aware that Albus had a thin beard. There was blood in it.

"Don't be scared," Harry said.

"I'm not scared, Dad. You're here," Al replied and then took one last look at the house. "I'm ready to go home."

"Not quite, champ," Harry said with a smile. "I'm taking you straight to St. Mungo's."

"Honestly, Dad, I'm not hurt. I told you, this isn't my blood."

"I believe you, but my Paranoid Dad Instincts are settling in. Oh, come on, Al, can't you go just for me? I haven't been able to be your paranoid dad for six years."

Albus stared at him with wide eyes and jumped to his feet. "It's been six years?"

"Yes, Al. It's 2024 and you turned nineteen last June," Harry said.

"What month is it now?"

"November."

Harry could tell that the conversation was making Al emotional and quickly changed the subject. He would be happy to talk about his son's feelings once they got to St. Mungo's. "I'm going to assume you haven't done Ride-Along Apparation, so just hold onto me and let me do all the work."

Albus didn't respond, but grabbed Harry's forearm and waited. The few seconds before they Disapparated were when Harry finally got to marvel over how much Al had grown. Al was as tall as he was now, with a thin beard and long, scraggly hair that almost came down to his shoulders. He had always been scrawny, but was now only skin and bones. Harry had a feeling that if he lifted up Al's thin t-shirt, he would be able to clearly see his ribs. Al was not only covered in blood, but also in dirt and grime and he smelled terrible, like he hadn't showered in months.

Harry and Albus Disapparated. They appeared in front of St. Mungo's and Harry was about to congratulate himself for not stumbling when Albus fell to his knees and began to dry heave, once again shaking like a leaf. The only good thing about Al not having food in his stomach was that he didn't have anything to throw up so Harry didn't have any vomit to dodge as he pulled his son to his feet.

"What – was – _that?_" Albus groaned.

"You just Apparated, buddy."

"It was awful!"

"Most people have that reaction their first time," Harry said, chuckling. He and Al walked through the barrier and entered St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries. Seeing as there seemed to be nothing particularly wrong with Albus, Harry approached the Welcoming Witch and asked for a Healer to look at his son personally.

"I'm sorry, sir, but we don't do that here –" she began and then stopped mid-sentence when she saw him. "Er, yes, Mr. Potter. I'll get on that straight away."

"Being you sure has its advantages, doesn't it?" Albus teased and it was a comfort to Harry to know that he didn't really mean it. Albus was the only Potter who hated attention from the media and special treatment more than Harry did.

A Healer in lime green robes approached the father and son and led them to a private room. He examined every part of Albus's body while Harry called Ginny from the telephone outside, which was even more ancient than the one in his home.

"_St. Mungo's!?_ What for? Is he hurt? Should I be there?"

"Ginny, calm down. He's fine. I brought him in just in case."

"Why? What happened?"

Harry lowered his voice and explained to his wife about Albus killing his abductor and being covered in his blood. "– and so I brought him to St. Mungo's just in case there's something he's not telling me about. Are you coming soon?"

"I will as soon as I get a hold of James and Lily," Ginny replied and Harry very nearly face palmed.

"James and Lily! I didn't even think about telling them!"

Ginny's soft laughter warmed his heart, even from over the phone. She said, "This is why I'm the responsible parent, Harry."

"I'm going to get back to Al, now. Get here as soon as you can," he replied. They say goodbye and he hung up the phone. When Harry arrived back in the private room, the Healer had only just finished inspecting Albus.

"He seems to be perfectly fine, Mr. Potter. However, I would recommend a shower and that he stay her overnight just in case something comes up," the Healer said. "We have a few vacant patient bathrooms that he can choose from. It will have a shower and a razor and anything else he needs."

"Thanks, that would be great," Harry said and turned to his son. "Take as much time as you need, Al. I'll be right here when you get out. Mum, James, and Lil will probably be here, too."

"Okay," Al said and followed the Healer to the bathroom.

As Harry had expected, Al took a long time in the bathroom. Long enough for the rest of his family to arrive at St. Mungo's and for him to phone Ron to tell him the news and that they needed to investigate 717 Coral Street as soon as possible.

"Oh, Al, why would you do that to your hair? Why didn't you just let me take you to a barber?" was the first thing Ginny asked when she saw her son. Al seemed to have obtained a pair of scissors and cut off large amounts of his hair, leaving it short and uneven. Harry also noticed that Albus had shaved off his beard and was squeaky clean. He still looked starved, but was all shiny and new again with a hospital gown to complete the look.

"I wanted to do it myself," Al replied and sat down on the bed in the private room.

"Merlin, Al, where have you _been?_" James blurted out.

"Don't stress him out, James! He only just got back! Don't you know _anything_ about being sensitive?" Lily cried, exasperated.

"I'm sorry! Damn!"

"Lily is right. There is a time and place for that story and it's not right now. I'm going to have Al rest for a few days before letting the Auror Department question him," Harry said and Al shot him a grateful smile.

"You should get some sleep, Al. You must be exhausted," Ginny said.

"Yeah, it must have been a long six years."

"JAMES!"

"Sorry, sorry!"

"No, I'm okay," Al said and when Ginny kept pestering him, he insisted, "I'm not tired, Mum! Really."

Harry noted that Al seemed to be coping with everything really well…a little too well. He also hadn't shed any tears or "I love you"s or asked for hugs and kisses from his family members. He seemed to be adjusting too easily and that was suspicious.

He convinced Ginny to let Al stay up for a while, ordered Lily to get Albus something to eat (he must have been starved) and told James to fetch a deck of cards from Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. Once Harry made sure Al was being taken care of, he departed for 717 Coral Street, where he had promised to meet Ron.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: I'm really glad that everybody seems to be liking the story so far! I will be updating (hopefully) weekly so you won't have to wait too long for new chapters. Before I write any more, I wanted to get something out of the way. As you all know, I'm a big Albus/Scorpius, so I was wondering if I should enter Scorpius into the story and make it some fluffy AS/S on the side or keep it strictly a father/son story. Keep in mind that if Scorpius did have a part in the story, it would be a very minor part because the story ****_is_**** mainly about Harry & Albus's relationship. I'm not sure which I should do so PM me or leave your thoughts in the review! I would love to hear what you guys think!**

**-Rachel **

* * *

Harry pushed open the front door to 717 Coral Street and entered with Ron in tow. His best friend was complaining about not being able to say hello to his nephew before investigating the house.

"Shut up, Ron!" Harry hissed. For all they knew, someone could still be there. Albus had told him that he had killed his abductor, but who said his abductor lived alone?

Harry was about to suggest that they investigate the entire perimeter when Ron pointed out droplets of blood forming a trail that seemed to come from a door in the hallway. Harry opened the door and descended the stairs into what he assumed was a basement. Ron followed closely behind, glancing nervously at the bloodied handprints (Al's, presumably) on the railing.

The basement was pitch black and he and Ron lit up their wands with a single thought. Harry ignored the rest of the basement and walked towards a door slightly open at the opposite end of the room.

"Where are you going, mate?" Ron asked.

Harry pointed ahead of him. "That door. It's ajar."

"No, it's not, it's a door."

The ends of Harry's lips twitched upwards at Ron's lame attempt to ease the tension. He gently pushed open the door with the tips of his fingertips and what he saw made his stomach turn over. It was a small room, roughly the size of Lily's bedroom at home, and in it was a mattress shoved into a corner, a properly working toilet, and a bookshelf overflowing with novels. But what made him nearly be sick was an overweight man lying on the floor next to the mattress, his head bashed in so that he was unrecognizable and a bloody baseball bat lying inches away. The man's Holyhead Harpies t-shirt was smeared with blood and his left leg was sticking out at an unnatural angle.

Just as Harry had finished analyzing everything in the room, the smell hit him. He and Ron gagged and he quickly shut the door, enclosing them in what would have been darkness except for the light of their wands.

"Merlin's beard! _Albus_ did that?" Ron cried. Harry had explained to Ron everything that Al had told him on the way over there.

"It was self-defense. He had no choice," Harry said defensively.

"No, no, I know. I just – this is _Al._ I didn't think he had it in him," Ron explained.

Harry easily could have taken offense to this, but chose not to. Ron hadn't meant it in a nasty way and Harry knew exactly what he was talking about. Albus had always been the shy, passive one of the family and the thought that he could do something this violent and horrific was astounding.

"I think we've seen enough," Harry concluded and Ron was happy to agree. He was even happier to leave 717 Coral Street, as was Harry. Harry was sure that the small room was where Al had been held captive all these years. The room had had concrete walls, no windows, and he was sure it was soundproof. The thought of Albus banging on the walls and screaming for help, not knowing that no one could hear him, made Harry want to squeeze his younger son close and never let go.

Harry and Ron quickly walked out the front door and discussed their options as they walked down the road.

"When do you think we should talk to Al about, you know, what happened down there?" Ron inquired.

"I was hoping to wait a few days, until he can get settled in. I wanted to give him time to see everyone in the family before I pester him with questions," Harry said and then admitted, "His Healer thinks he'll need therapy."

Ron looked appalled. "Well, yeah! You can't expect a kid to go through something like that and not be a little mental afterwards! Al will need to get some of that crazy out of his system," he said. Harry still didn't look convinced, so he went on, "Listen, Rose had to go to therapy for a while during her 7th year. Because of the bloody N.E.W.T.s, believe it or not. It's nothing to be _embarrassed_ about. It will probably help him."

"I'm not embarrassed. I just don't like the thought of something so traumatic happening to my son that he needs therapy. A kid shouldn't have to deal with stuff like that."

"We did, didn't we?"

"That was different," Harry said, but he couldn't really think of any differences in the traumatic incidents during his teenage years from Al's.

He and Ron continued to walk down the path in silence. They could have Apparated anywhere, but Harry didn't feel quite ready to go back yet. This was strange, considering he hadn't seen his son in six years. He should be dying to get back to him, yet he wasn't sure he would be able to look at Al the same after what he had just seen. What had his boy been through? His thoughts wandered back to Al's suspicious behavior at the hospital. How could he act so normal, like everything was fine when everything clearly wasn't fine?

Harry stopped under the street sign that read _Coral St._ He and Ron were standing under a streetlight and it felt like he was standing underneath a spotlight. Harry realized that his family had always been under a spotlight. He had always known this, of course, but he had just _realized_ it, if that made any sense. He didn't want Albus to immediately be under the spotlight, pestered by reporters and examined by Healers to see what was wrong with him. He just wanted Al to be a normal kid. He had always wanted that for him. Six years ago, this feat had seemed possible, but now he was sure his childhood had been tainted. Was it too much to ask for Al to have a normal adulthood, then?

"Should we get going?" Ron asked, breaking through Harry's thoughts. Harry realized that he had been spacing out.

"Yeah, sorry. Let's go."

The two men Disapparated under the street light and appeared in front of St. Mungo's. They entered the magical hospital and when they got to Albus's room, Hermione, Rose, and Hugo were there as well as the Potters. Ron looked slightly guilty and Harry rolled his eyes, although he wasn't really angry. He had asked Ron not to tell anyone about Al's reappearance until the next day, but hadn't really expected him to obey.

"Hey, Al."

"Hey, Dad." Albus looked up at his father and smiled. Al was sitting up in his hospital bed, his hair looking short but not as choppy and uneven. Ginny must have convinced him to let her fix it for him. She also must have convinced him to get under the covers of his bed, but was not able to get him to lie down. Al noticed the other man in the room and said, "Hi, Uncle Ron."

"Er – hi, Albus. I mean, Al. How's it going?"

"Good, I guess. How about you?" Albus asked politely.

"All right. Your dad and I just got back from taking a look around that creepy house," Ron said. Al looked uncomfortable at the mention of it and Hermione jumped in.

"We were just telling Al what everyone has been up to the last couple of years. He was curious on what he's missed. Care to share something?"

Harry knew that she was talking to him and not Ron. He wanted to answer, too, but what could he say? 'I met some new people and saved a couple of lives, but none of it mattered because you weren't here'? No, of course not. So he just stood there and said nothing and waited for Ron to answer Hermione's question.

Ron caught on quickly and began to ramble about Rose's new job and Hugo graduating this year. Ginny looked at Harry suspiciously and he knew they would have to talk about it later. It didn't matter to him, as long as he didn't have to talk or think or deal with it right now.

A few days passed and eventually, the entire family had come to see Albus in the hospital. By the end of those few days, the entire Wizarding World had found out about Albus's reappearance and Harry and Ginny sometimes had to block reporters from the door. When Harry decided it was okay for Al to leave the hospital, Ginny went home ahead of them to straighten things up and Harry took Al to the Auror Department in the Ministry of Magic to be questioned.

"What is your name?"

"Albus Potter," Al said, fidgeting uncomfortably in his chair. Harry and Ron were watching over as a member of the Wizengamot questioned him about his kidnapping. Harry would have preferred to do it himself, but it was procedure, so he was forced to let it go.

"How old are you?"

"Nineteen, I think."

"You're not sure?"

Albus stole a worried glance at his father before answering, "Well, I dunno. I've been trapped in a basement for six years, haven't I? My dad told me I'm nineteen, so I guess I'm nineteen."

"How old did you think you were before your father told you your actual age?"

"I hadn't thought about it."

The Wizengamot wizard, whose name was Tim Galliger, took a few notes and continued with the questioning: "The man who abducted you's name was George Tilbitt, correct?"

"He told me to call him George, yeah. I don't know his last name."

"If I gave you a picture of George, could you identify him as your abductor?"

"Yes."

Tim Galliger held up a picture of George Tilbitt. It was a mug shot of him from a previous Azkaban sentence. George looked about ten years younger, but Harry could tell that Al recognized him.

"That's him."

"Now, I want you to explain to me everything you can remember about what happened six years ago, when you were abducted. All right?"

Albus nodded and started to speak. Harry noticed that Albus made a point not to look at him once he started telling his story. This was odd, seeing as just a few seconds ago, Al had been throwing him pleading glances for help.

"I was sitting on the front porch, reading my book –"

"What was the name of the book?" Tim interrupted.

"I-I don't remember," Albus stammered and Harry found himself rolling his eyes. Did it really matter what the name of the book was? Al cleared his throat and continued, "I was waiting for my dad to come back with ice cream when this guy – er, George – was walking down the street with a bag of groceries. He dropped them in front of my house and I put my book down so I could help him pick his food up."

"Did he put the Imperius curse on you?"

"Uh, no, I don't think so. I picked up all his groceries and he thanked me for the help and when I turned around to go back to the porch, he hit me over the head with something hard and I blacked out. When I woke up, I was in the basement."

"Why would he do that, Albus? A team of Aurors went to inspect the house after your dad did and they found evidence that this man was a wizard. Why would he take you by force when he could have put a spell on you?" Tim asked.

"I don't know."

"Do you think he _wanted_ to use force? Do you think he wanted a challenge?"

"How the hell should I know?" Albus blurted out, angrily, and Tim wasn't able to get any answers out of him after that. Harry couldn't blame him for not wanting to talk to Tim after that – he was a real arse. However, there were more questions that needed to be answered so, to his delight, Harry was able to take over the questioning.

"Okay, let's recap. George hit you over the head and you ended up at 717 Coral Street, right?" Harry asked and Albus shook his head.

"He didn't take me there. He took me to the first house."

"What do you mean?"

"We moved around a lot. You must have done a good job at searching for me because he was really paranoid about getting caught and made us move every once in a while. I was always locked in a basement, though," Albus explained. "Whenever we would move, he would come into the basement and hit me over the head with his baseball bat and I would wake up somewhere else. That's what he was doing the day that I…escaped."

"How did you manage to, er, turn the tables on him?" Harry asked. He felt stupid, but couldn't think of another way to phrase it.

"Well, I had been planning it out in my head for six years, so I knew what I was doing. It wasn't a stroke of luck or anything like that. He looked pretty scared and a little drunk when he came into the room and told me that we were moving again. I knew I had a shot because he never announces to me that we're moving, he just clubs me over the head and I wake up somewhere new. George started looking around and muttering to himself, so I kicked him in the, er, jewels as hard as I could. He dropped the bat when he fell to his knees and I grabbed it off the ground and…well, I guess you know what happened from there."

Harry nodded and glanced down at Tim's notes (a bunch of psychological bullshit). He admired Albus's bravery and dreaded having to ask him the next question.

"Al, uh, a team of Aurors investigated the house after your Uncle Ron and I did. They investigated it a lot more thoroughly and they found some…devices. Torture devices, to be exact. Do – do you know anything about those?"

Albus nodded.

"Can you tell me?"

"George left me alone during the day. At night, he would bring in one of those…_machines_ and he would use it on me," Al said.

"Every night?"

"Yeah."

Harry licked his lips. There were so many more questions he wanted to ask, but he didn't want to scare Albus off. Look at how easily he had turned on Tim. He was the boy's father, but that didn't mean that Al wouldn't shut _him_ out as well. He had to be careful if he wanted the right answers.

"Okay, Al, that's all we need from you. Thank you for answering our questions the best you could," Harry said lamely and told Albus to wait for him outside the questioning room. Almost as soon as Al had shut the door behind him, Ron asked,

"Is it me or does something about Al's story not fit?"

"I know, it doesn't make sense. Why would this George guy torture him every night if not for information?"

"So you think he's lying to us?" Ron asked.

"I dunno," Harry admitted. "I think he's telling us some version of the truth, but he's leaving some parts out. _Why,_ though?"

Ron shrugged. He was just as dumbfounded at the situation as Harry was. So Harry sought out the one person he thought would be able to help – the Healer that had cared for Albus the last few days.

"There are a number of reasons why he would withhold information from you," the Healer said after Harry explained the whole story. "He could be scared –"

"What's he got to be scared of? His kidnapper is dead!"

"– or embarrassed. He could simply be traumatized and hope that by not thinking about what really happened to him during his abduction, he will forget and it will make everything okay again. He could be trying to protect you from things that happened to him that he feels you can't handle. For all we know, it could be a combination of the four or some other reason I haven't mentioned."

"What can I do to get him to tell me?" Harry asked.

"You can't be too forceful or you'll frighten him away and he'll never open up to you. You will have to coax the information out of him. All you can do right now is be supportive and let him know you're there if he wants to talk. Basically, just be his father."

Harry could do that.


	4. Chapter 4

"Where do I sit?"

The words were spoken by Albus when he approached the long table at the Burrow with no available seats. The entire family was gathered around the table for Christmas dinner, more than a month after Albus had been found. Arthur patted the seat at the front of the table with a smile.

"Right here, Al," he said.

"But – but that's where you sit!" Albus stammered, unable to believe his eyes.

"Not tonight. Tonight, that seat is for our Guest of Honor."

Albus blushed a dark shade of crimson and tried to politely decline, but was eventually guilted into taking his seat at the head of the table. Arthur drew up a chair next to Molly and the feast began. Harry wasn't fully able to appreciate Molly Weasley's cooking, however, because he was too busy watching Albus. Everyone in the family, save Ginny, thought he was barking mad. 'He's fine,' they always insisted; 'You're just being paranoid,' they constantly reminded him.

Yet, none of them had been living in the same house with Albus for over a month. None of them had noticed the strange occurrences that had been happening. Harry was worried about Albus because he had been acting, in Ginny's words, "a little down lately" ever since he had arrived home from the hospital. Now, he wasn't worried that Albus had somehow turned into a raging psychopath over the last six years and was going to murder him and Ginny in their beds. This was real life, not one of Lily's murder mystery novels.

Albus only came out of his room for meals and to use the toilet, which wasn't so unusual for a teenager or young adult. Lily had been locked in her room all day every day since she was about thirteen, and Harry had grown used to it. The two situations were the same, yet totally different. When Lily was up in her room, she was reading, pacing, chatting away on her cell phone at a mile a minute, always finding some way to _occupy_ herself. However, all of the times that Harry had entered Albus's room, he found his youngest son either curled up in bed with no will to get up or perched on the windowsill and staring out the window. Harry was sure that Al was doing both of these activities for hours.

Harry and Ginny had been informed that Albus wasn't cooperating in therapy. He sat across from his therapist and didn't say one word for the entire one hour session, no matter how many questions she asked or how many times she told him to participate. Albus constantly seemed to be drooping and sad, almost as if he was a flower and every day he wilted a bit more. He chatted with Harry and Ginny about how their day was and mindless things like that, but they didn't take about anything that _really_ mattered. As soon as either of them brought up therapy or George or his kidnapping, Al would completely shut down and freeze them out.

He was also incapable of eating, which was why Harry was watching him so closely tonight. He was sure that the reason Albus had resisted so hard against sitting at the head of the table was because he didn't want to be the center of attention when he vomited his food back up. At first, Ginny thought her cooking was bad or that she had given Al food poisoning. They both quickly learned that Albus could never eat more than half of what was on his plate because he always darted to the bathroom to throw it up before he could finish.

He and Ginny were both seriously worried and Ginny went to ask his therapist what she thought could be wrong with Al while Harry was at work only a week before. She came back with glum news and a bottle of anti-depressants to give to their son.

They had decided to keep the news between them and Al, choosing to tell not even Lily and James for the moment. Harry loved his daughter and eldest son, but neither of them could keep a secret to save their own lives. He thought it best to keep Al's predicament on the down low until he, Al, and Ginny figured out how to deal with it. The problem was that Al was even less willing to cooperate with them than before. He often complained about his pills, saying that they made him feel fuzzy and numb and had been giving both his parents the cold shoulder since they refused to let him stop taking them.

Ginny sat across from him at the large table and was paying just as much attention to Al as he was, while somehow managing to talk with other members of the family at the same time. Harry would never be able to figure out how she could do such a task without making it obvious that she was staring at Albus.

Albus smiled and sometimes laughed politely when a family member spoke to him, but didn't contribute much to the conversation. He pushed the food around on his plate and took miniscule bites, but even that didn't stop him from looking sick when he put it in his mouth. Al must have known that making a big deal of it here would cause a scene and he didn't want that, so he choked down half of his hamburger and a few pieces of fruit before excusing himself to go to the bathroom.

Ginny gave him a sharp look and Harry knew that meant "follow him" so he made an excuse to leave and followed Al up the stairs. When he reached the locked bathroom door, he heard Albus vomiting as quietly as he could. Harry knocked and asked, "Are you okay, Al?"

Harry heard more retching sounds and then Al moaned, "I'm fine."

"Do you want me to get you a glass of water?"

"Yes, please."

Surprised that Albus had accepted, Harry walked all the way down to the kitchen to pour a glass when he realized that he could have done it with magic. Mentally cursing himself, he took the stairs two at a time to get back to Albus with the glass clutched to his chest. He knocked again and said, "I have the water. Let me in."

He heard Albus groan and get to his feet. Soft footsteps filled his ears and then the door slowly opened. Albus looked green and Harry was afraid he was going to be sick all over the floor if he was away from the toilet for too long. Albus was wobbly and shaky, seemingly unable to hold himself steady. He took the glass, but his hands were shaking so much that about half of it ended up down his front.

Harry took this opportunity to shut the door behind them and say, "We need to talk, you and I."

"Dad," he groaned and sat down on the rim of the bathtub, "Mum already asked me if I was bulimic. I'm not. I just can't eat. My stomach rejects everything."

"That's not what I mean. I want to talk about your behavior at home."

"_Now?_"

"Yes, now that I've got you cornered, if you want to put it that way. You won't speak to me any other way, so I guess it has to be like this," Harry said. He expected Albus to start yelling, James and Lily would have, but he only sighed and played with the loose strings on his shirt.

"I can't talk to you or Mum because I know you'll bring up what happened and I can't talk about that. Not with you guys, not in therapy, not ever."

"You have to. If not with me or Mum, at least talk to Mrs. Gregory. I'm not paying her so you can stare at a wall for an hour."

"Then quit sending me because I'm not going to talk to her."

"That's the only way she can help you, Al," Harry tried to reason with him.

"I don't need her help! I can take care of myself!" Al snapped and then immediately looked ashamed. "Look, it's just…I've been depressed for a long time, even before I got out. I thought that once things went back to normal, it would go away, but it hasn't because you and everyone else keeps trying to remind me about what happened. I'm just trying to _forget_ so I can be normal again. If I forget, I'll stop being depressed and things will get better."

"Burying your problems won't help you. Mrs. Gregory said so," Harry pointed out.

"She's wrong then!"

"You think you know more about psychology and how a person's brain work than she does? She's a professional. She's been studying this stuff for _years_ –"

"That's right!" Albus hissed. "She's been studying and James has graduated and everyone else has carried on doing normal things. You know what I've been doing? I've been locked in a fucking basement, that's what _I've_ been doing!"

Albus's face was starting to turn red and angry tears sprung to his eyes. He was clutching the edge of the tub with such ferocity that his knuckles were turning white.

"Is that what's been bothering you? That you haven't been able to have a normal childhood like everyone else?" Harry asked. Albus stared at the floor. "Answer me."

"It's part of it."

"Well, moping about your past isn't going to make your future brighter." Harry realized he sounded harsh, but he felt Al needed to hear this. "You can be normal like everyone else, but lying in bed all day is not how you achieve that goal. I'm going to get you a job and a tutor so you can carry on with school and _be like everyone else._ All right?"

Albus was wearing a look that was a mixture of anger, relief, and confusion. He cracked his knuckles and wiped his eyes and looked anywhere but at Harry. "Fine, but I'm still not talking to my stupid therapist."


	5. Chapter 5

When Teddy Lupin first informed Harry that his second cousin, Scorpius Malfoy, was offering tutoring and suggested that he hire him for Albus, he wasn't so sure it was a good idea. He wanted to hire a professional to educate his child, even if Scorpius did tutor for a fraction of a professional's price. Teddy accused him of being prejudiced (apparently he and Malfoy were close, which was a surprise because Harry wasn't even aware that they had met), but this was not the case. He didn't know Scorpius and didn't want a stranger tutoring Al.

"Do you really think Al is going to respond to a professional?" Teddy had asked with a raised eyebrow. "You sent him to one professional and look how well he's doing with that one."

"That's different. That's his therapist," Harry had said quickly, but Teddy charged on.

"What Al needs is to be around someone his own age, someone who he can talk to and relate to. Scorpius is a nice guy; he can do all that with Al and _still_ teach him stuff. So, whaddaya say?"

To be perfectly honest, Harry had only agreed for Teddy's sake. He was still uneasy about the decision, but Ginny told him he was being stupid. As soon as he set eyes on Scorpius, he was never surer about anything in his life: he was _not_ being stupid.

"Hello, Mr. Potter," Scorpius said and extended his hand.

Scorpius was unlike anybody Harry had ever seen. His platinum blonde hair was neatly slicked back, he had his books clutched to a chest that was donning a sweater vest, and everything about him screamed "virgin". Harry stifled a laugh and Scorpius looked at him curiously.

"Sir?"

"Er, sorry," Harry said and shook the young man's hand.

"May I come in?"

"Yes, of course. Albus will be down in a minute."

Harry sidestepped so that Scorpius would have enough room to walk in and shut the door behind him. Ginny invited Scorpius into the kitchen and he began to set up his books on the kitchen table.

"Is it all right that I put my things here? Do you need it for anything?" the blonde boy asked Ginny, who smiled and shook her head.

"We already ate lunch, dear, go ahead."

Scorpius thanked her and carefully spread out his books, parchment, and quills. He waited patiently for Albus to descend the stairs, but after nearly ten minutes, Harry excused himself to go fetch his son. He found Al's room empty, but the bathroom across the hall was locked. With a groan, Harry turned the handle, expecting to see Al either retching into the toilet bowl or hiding from his tutor. Albus was doing neither. Instead, Harry had walked in on his son trying to shave and put deodorant on at the same time while smelling strongly of cologne.

"What the hell are you doing?"

"_DAD!_" Al shrieked in surprise. He nearly cut himself with his razor and dropped the deodorant. It made a loud crack when it hit the floor. "Knock next time! Merlin!"

"Wha –? When did you change your clothes?" Harry gestured to Albus's plaid shirt and blue jeans. "I thought you were determined to lounge around in your pajamas all day and that if Scorpius didn't like it, then too bad."

"Daaad!" Albus whined.

"Hey, they're your words, not mine."

"Get out! Please!"

"You do know that Scorpius is here, right? He's waiting for you downstairs," Harry said.

"I know! I saw him walk up to the door from my window," Albus replied and retrieved the deodorant from the floor. He put a little on each pit and capped it before returning it to its proper place in the drawer.

"Why didn't you come say hello? You're being rude, you kno –" Harry started, and then paused to glance at all of the tools Albus had laid out. A comb, a toothbrush and toothpaste, cologne, a razor and shaving cream, and various tins of breath mints were cluttering the counter. Harry suddenly felt very stupid for not figuring it out earlier. "_Oh._"

"_Go away._"

Harry did not go away. Instead, he snorted with laughter. "You fancy _Scorpius?_ The kid sitting in my kitchen in a sweater vest?"

Albus's face quickly turned about as red as his mother's hair. "No – of course I don't – _get out!_"

"Do you want me to go tell him why you're so late?"

"I do not fancy him, I just don't want to look like a slob! Tell him _that,_ why don't you?"

"Whatever you say. Well, anyway, your future husband is still waiting for whenever you feel like coming downstairs."

Albus began to shove Harry out the door. He smiled for the first time in weeks and said, "You're the worst."

Harry allowed himself to be pushed into the hallway and chuckled when Albus slammed and locked the door. When he came back into the kitchen, both Ginny and Scorpius were looking at him worriedly.

"Well? Is he okay?" Ginny pushed.

"He's fine," Harry said, biting back a laugh. He said to Scorpius, "Al will be down in a minute. He's rather pleased that you're here."

Scorpius beamed at him and went back to organizing his papers. Al arrived in the kitchen minutes later and Ginny nearly spit out her coffee at the sight of him. Harry understood why she was so surprised – Albus hadn't changed out of sweatpants or pajamas in weeks.

"Hi, I'm Albus," Al said and sat across from Scorpius at the table. Scorpius meant to extend his hand once again, but Al beat him to it. Harry and Ginny didn't see much more of their study session, but only because Al gave them death glares until they left the room.

Harry tried to keep his and Al's encounter a secret to protect his son's privacy, but Ginny forced it out of him. Unlike Harry, she failed to see the humor in Al's embarrassment.

"I think it's good that he fancies _someone,_ even if it's a Malfoy. It's good for him. Scorpius is sweet, even if he is a bit…"

"Dorky?" Harry guessed.

"I was going to say odd, but I guess that works, too," Ginny said with a giggle.

Harry hoped that spending time with Scorpius would lift Albus's spirits, but it seemed that as soon as Scorpius was gone, Al reverted back to his depressed state. Even when Scorpius _was_ there, Al didn't seem that much happier. He smiled a little more and flirted awkwardly, but that was as far as Al's spirit lifted.

One night Harry woke in the middle of the night with an urge to pee. He passed Al's room on the way to the bathroom, but stopped a few feet in front of his door, forgetting all about having to use the toilet. His son was groaning and crying out for help. Harry threw open the door and glanced around the room for an intruder, but found no one. He discovered why when he saw Albus yelling and thrashing around in bed. For a moment, Harry could only stare at his son, but then Al cried out, "Dad!" in his sleep and Harry jumped forward.

"Al! Al, wake up! It's just a dream!" Harry violently shook Albus until he woke. Al let out a small scream when his eyes flew open and recoiled against Harry's touch.

"Wha – what happened?" he gasped.

"You were having a nightmare," Harry replied, even though he was sure that Al knew what had happened. Albus wrapped his blankets tightly around himself, despite the fact that he was covered in sweat. "Were – were you dreaming about George?"

Albus nodded and stared at the opposite wall, his eyes glistening with tears. "I dreamt that he was…alive and he found me and took me back to the basement. He grabbed me from behind and I called out for you, but you weren't there."

"Listen to me, Albus," Harry said seriously. "George is dead. He will never be able to hurt you again. Do you understand me?"

"Yes, but –"

"No buts. Do you understand?"

Albus nodded and kept his wet eyes locked on the opposite wall. He was trembling slightly and was still trembling when Harry came back with a glass of water. Albus drank it all in two gulps and, to Harry's relief, was able to hold it down.

Harry sat down at the edge of the bed and studied his son's face for a moment. He was scared and uncomfortable, but guarded as well. It seemed like he had gone from relying on Harry to comfort him after a nightmare to shutting him out of his life once again at the flick of a switch.

"Do you want to talk about the dream?"

"No," Albus said firmly.

"Are you sure? Because –"

"I'm sure, Dad. It was just a stupid nightmare. I'm fine."

"You weren't fine two minutes ago," Harry pointed out.

"Well, I'm fine now. I was just a bit shaken up, is all," Albus explained and lay back down in bed, pulling his covers more tightly around himself. Harry wondered if this was to protect himself from his dad's questions and prying eyes.

"Have you been taking your medication every day?"

"Yes, Dad."

"And participating in therapy?"

"_Yes,_ Dad."

"What do you and Mrs. Gregory talk about?" Harry pried.

"Dad!"

"Don't 'dad' me. Answer the question, please."

Albus huffed out of frustration and annoyance. He answered, "We talk about my throwing up and my nightmares. That's really it."

"Nightmares? You have nightmares often?"

Albus nodded. "Every night."

"How come you didn't tell me? Or Mum?"

Albus shrugged and refused to answer any more questions on the subject, so Harry decided to change it.

"How are you and Scorpius getting along? He seems nice."

"He is," Albus replied, suspicious at the sudden change of subject. "He's really interesting. I wish I had talked to him more while I was at Hogwarts."

"You can make up for that now, then."

"I guess."

Harry deduced that Al was tired and let him get back to sleep. He ruffled Al's hair and pulled the covers up to his chin, despite his son's protests. It had been far too long since he got to tuck Albus into bed at night and wouldn't deny himself of this treat just because his son was nineteen.


	6. Chapter 6

Harry Potter arrived at work the next morning with a headache and a short temper. He had been woken up in the middle of the night by Albus's vomiting and woken up a second time by Albus's night terrors. Afterwards, Albus couldn't go back to sleep and spent the rest of the night pacing the house. Harry knew this because he heard the footsteps all night long. He was cranky and was most definitely going to have a word with his son when he got home.

"Mr. Potter? Mr. Potter, could I have a word?" Harry groaned inwardly at the sound of his assistant's voice and turned to face Henry with a fake smile.

"This really isn't a good time. Can it wait until tomorrow?" Harry asked.

"I'm afraid not, sir. It's information regarding Albus's case. I've been meaning to give it to you for days," Henry explained and held the documents out for Harry to take.

For the longest time, Albus's case had been Harry's priority, but then Albus had been found and Harry began to worry about other cases. He had been meaning to go back and look at the investigations and information other Aurors who were assigned Al's case had collected, but kept pushing it off. Now, it seemed that Henry would not be brushed off any longer.

Harry sighed and took the documents from him. "Thanks, Henry, I'll look at these as soon as I have the time."

Harry took the documents back to his office and used the yellow folder as a coaster for his coffee. He soon forgot all about Albus's case as he filled out paperwork and closed other cases. His hand cramped and his minor headache had become a full-blown migraine by the time it was time for lunch. Harry was beyond relieved when Ron offered to bring him something back to the office for lunch.

His empty coffee cup was mocking him, so Harry was just about to get up and refill it when he noticed the yellow folder underneath it. He decided that he might as well flip through it while he was waiting for Ron to get back with his sandwich. Harry felt a little ashamed for putting his son's case on hold for so long, but figured that there would be nothing in this yellow folder that he didn't already know.

He found out he was wrong with a single glance at the first page.

_Albus Severus Potter was abducted by George E. Tilbitt, a registered sex offender…_

Harry froze, his eyes glued to the paper. Registered sex offender. Pieces were starting to come together in Harry's mind, but he pushed them away. He did not want the pieces to come together. He did not want to figure it out. He did not want to know.

Trembling, Harry put down the documents and stared at his empty coffee cup until Ron came back with their lunch. He didn't know how long he sat there with a look of horror on his face and didn't care. In the back of his mind, he wondered if this is what Albus felt like all the time. Harry, once again, put on a fake smile and told Ron that he had a lot of work to do and that he would like to eat his lunch alone. As soon as Ron left, Harry pushed away the sandwich and opened the folder again. The numbness and denial was starting to fade away and it was being replaced by curiosity. A ball of dread was sitting in the pit of Harry's stomach as he opened the folder once more.

Harry read every piece of information carefully. Some of it was stuff he already knew, like how long Albus had been held captive and where. Harry read other things, however, things he didn't know and didn't want to know. He read that George molested several young boys years before abducting Albus. He read that George had been very anti-social and withdrawn in his teenage years. He had gotten in trouble several times for killing and dissecting animals in his young adulthood. Several Aurors made statements saying that they believed that George was working himself up to being a serial killer and that Albus was to be his first victim, but for whatever reason, kept him alive. Some said he didn't have the stones to finish the job. Others said that he was sexually repressed and had kept Albus alive on purpose to do things with him, or rather, to him.

Harry did not care which it was. All he knew was that the information that Albus had been keeping from him was out now. He understood now why Al would keep secrets. Harry began to feel sick again and went to the bathroom to wash his face and try to get the images of machines and devices that Harry had thought were being used strictly for torture out of his head. Now he knew that they were used for carrying out sexual fantasies as well. How many times had Al been raped? How many times had Al been forced to do awful things?

All of his previous anger at Albus had washed away. He informed the other Aurors that he would be leaving early and shot Ron an 'I'll-explain-later' look before departing. He had to find Ginny, and they had to speak to Albus pronto.

* * *

"What are you two doing home?" Albus asked, surprised, when Harry and Ginny entered his room a little after one o'clock. He had out a journal that his therapist had given to him to write out his feelings. He was doodling in it, instead.

"We need to talk to you about something very important, sweetie," Ginny said gently.

Albus looked at Ginny's face and then Harry's, trying to interpret them so he would be ready to face whatever they wanted to speak with him about. "What's this about?"

"It's about George," she said and sat down next to him on the bed. She put a comforting arm around him and squeezed his shoulder.

"I don't want to talk about him," Albus said defensively. He tried to shy away from his mother, but Ginny had a very strong grip and kept him right where he was.

Harry stood in the doorway, watching them and suddenly felt very sick again. If only he hadn't pushed off Al's case for so long, then he and Ginny would know the source of Al's problems. They would have been able to get him proper help sooner.

"Your father read over your case while he was at work today," Ginny said and brushed Al's bangs out of his face with her other hand. Albus didn't say a word so she continued softly, "Al, did you know that George had sexual affairs with several small boys before he kidnapped you?"

Albus paled. _He knows that we know,_ Harry thought upon inspecting Al's face.

"No," he squeaked.

"Are you sure, honey? He never mentioned the affairs at all?" Albus shook his head. "Did he mention that he used to torture and kill animals when he was your age?"

Albus shook his head again. "He didn't talk to me much," he said in a quiet voice.

"What kind of things did he do while you two were alone?"

Harry appreciated Ginny's method. Instead of flat out telling Albus that they knew, she was dropping hints that they knew and using these hints to coax the information out of him. He couldn't have done it better himself, which was why he had stayed silent so far.

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Hiding from what happened isn't going to help you stop being depressed," Harry spoke from the doorway. "If you want to get better, you have to tell us and, yes, telling us does involve having a full conversation about it. Do you want to get better, Albus?"

"I –"

"Do you want to get better?"

Albus nodded, his eyes brimming with tears.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

Harry nodded at Ginny to continue and she cleared her throat to draw Albus's attention back to her. "What did George do to you while you and he were alone together?" she asked.

"Bad things," Albus murmured.

"Did he rape you?"

"Yes," Albus said and put his head in his hands.

"Look at me, sweetie," Ginny said, and Albus allowed his mum to pry his hands away from his face. He looked at her and she pulled him into a hug. "I'm so sorry this happened to you."

Albus didn't reply. He buried his face in his mother's neck and whimpered while she held him. Harry moved from his spot in the doorway to sit down next to Albus on the bed and pat his back.

"You should have told us," Harry told him. Albus looked up from his mother's neck and wiped his eyes.

"I wanted to!" he cried. "I wanted to tell you guys so badly. But…"

"But what?" Ginny pushed.

"I didn't want everyone to know. I wanted to keep it just between us, but there are no secrets in this family," he spat out the last line bitterly.

"Al, if you want us to keep a secret, you know we will," Harry said.

"Yeah, but the family always finds out. They _always_ know."

"What's so bad about that? Your family cares about you," Ginny reminded him.

"I just – I can't explain it, I guess."

Harry understood what it was like to want a bit of privacy when everyone insists on prying into your social life, regardless of whether you wanted them to or not. He sympathized with Al and could understand why he kept his secret to himself for so long, even if he wished he hadn't.

The three Potters stayed in Albus's room all afternoon and discussed what Albus went through. Al shed a few more tears and insisted that he didn't want to talk about it a few more times, but in the end, he made real progress. Ginny convinced him to talk about his rape in therapy and Harry told him that they wouldn't tell the rest of the family until he wanted them to.

"Could – could you not tell them that I'm gay, either?" Albus asked him in a small voice.

"Sure," Harry said, "but why not?"

"I-I don't want them to think that I'm gay, so I must have liked it."

"Your family would never think that," Ginny said firmly.

"I know," Albus said quickly, "but when the family finds out about something, someone slips up and tells the media about it. The media _would_ think that about me."

"All right," Ginny said and glanced at the clock. It was a little after five. "I should get started on dinner. Your dad and I will leave you alone with your thoughts for a while, okay?"

Albus nodded in agreement and Ginny kissed his temple before leaving the room. Harry followed her out, but not before reminding Albus that he loved him.

"I love you, too, Dad," Al replied and then went back to staring at his hands. Harry shut the door behind him and went to find Ginny, his head buzzing. He was a little disappointed that Al hadn't come forward and told him about the rapes himself, but Al had made a lot of progress that day, and it was something.


	7. Chapter 7

"I really don't think this is a good idea," Ginny repeated.

It had been exactly one month since Al let her and Harry reveal to the family the horrible things that had happened to him over the six months he had been kidnapped, and James decided that the perfect way to cheer his brother up was to throw a party at his parents' house.

Ginny had said no at first. The answer was absolutely, completely, 100% no. James had pestered her for over three months and Harry was sure she was going to strangle her son until Albus had said quietly, "A party might be fun."

Harry and Ginny were all for a good party, but they had worried about what Albus felt about it. When he admitted that a party might not be such a bad thing, the issue was quickly resolved. Harry was annoyed that the party had to be held at _his_ house, but James had insisted that his crappy apartment couldn't _hold_ as many people as he invited and that his party would be the party of the century if it was held at _Harry Potter's house._

Harry didn't argue with this logic.

The Weasley-Potter children (and a few of their parents) started to arrive when Albus emerged from his room and joined them in the kitchen. He had dressed up for the party and James snickered at the sight of him.

"Merlin, Al, we're not going to bloody _church._ It's a party! Dress like it!" he cried and gestured to his jeans and worn t-shirt.

"I wanted to look nice for Scorpius," Albus replied and disappeared behind the refrigerator door. Lily had made sure to let everyone in the family know about Al's infatuation with the Malfoy boy and Al didn't even try to hide it any more.

James stared at his brother in disbelief. Albus emerged from behind the fridge door with a soda and asked, "_What?_" when he noticed James gaping at him.

"You invited _your_ friend to _my_ party?" James asked.

"Yes," Albus replied. "Is that a problem?"

Harry wasn't sure if Al was challenging James, or if he genuinely wanted to know the answer.

"You're bloody right it's a problem! It's _my_ party! You're lucky that you even get to come!"

"I thought the party was _for_ me, dill weed!" Al said, and then sighed. "I didn't think it was a big deal. I invited _one_ friend."

"You only _have_ one friend."

"Hey, hey, hey!" Ginny chose that time to intervene. She threw a dirty look in James's direction and Al used that opportunity to give his brother the middle finger. "Be nice to your brother, James, or I'll make you move the party elsewhere."

James grumbled and rolled his eyes, but he didn't make any more nasty comments about Albus's social life.

Guests that weren't related to Harry began to arrive and he knew that was his cue to disappear. He was taking Ginny out for dinner and a Muggle movie during the party. Harry didn't care if the party was still going on when they got home, as long as the noise didn't penetrate the Silencing charm he had placed on his bedroom door.

Harry and Ginny bid their relatives good night and left the house in a good mood.

* * *

Harry arrived home around midnight. The movie had gone on longer than he expected and he was about ready to drop from exhaustion. James's party was still in full swing when he and Ginny got home, and Ginny had quickly shooed drunk and horny teenagers out of her bathroom so she could shower and remove her make-up. She undressed and Harry was contemplating getting into the shower with her when she let him know that Albus was in his room and seemed upset, and that Harry should go talk to him.

Harry felt slightly annoyed. The only reason he was letting James throw this ridiculous party was so that Albus could have fun, yet Al was moping around in his room. Harry knocked on the door, though he doubted that his knock would be heard over the pumping of the music, and entered Al's room. Al was perched on his windowsill, clutching his knees to his chest and gazing out the window.

"Hey, Al."

Al seemed surprised to see him. "Oh, hey, Dad. I thought you were Mum again."

"She sent me to talk to you. She said you seemed upset."

"I guess you could say that," Al said.

"What's wrong?"

Albus shrugged.

"Where's Scorpius?" Harry tried again.

"He went home," Al replied.

"Oh," Harry said sympathetically. "Why did he leave?"

"I told him to."

Harry looked at his son in shock. Al was crazy about Scorpius. What could make him banish the kid from his house? "Why? What happened?"

Albus bit his lip and looked out his window. He seemed to be looking at the stars. "He-he kissed me."

"He kissed you, so you sent him home," Harry said. "Am I getting that right?"

"Yeah," Al said, blushing.

"I thought you really liked Scorpius."

"I do."

"So, the boy you fancy kisses you and you tell him to get lost."

"Yes."

Harry massaged his temples and struggled to follow his son's train of thought. "You've lost me, Al."

"I like Scorpius, but…I'm not ready for, er, kissing and stuff yet. I tried to explain that to him and he seemed disappointed, which made me feel guilty so I said maybe he should go home and he did," Al explained.

"I'm sure that if Scorpius likes you as much as you think he does, then he'll understand," Harry said. "He was probably just upset that you rejected him."

"Maybe."

"Scorpius doesn't seem like the type of kid that will make you do something you don't want to do."

"I guess."

"I'm just saying that as far as potential boyfriends go, it doesn't get much better than Scorpius."

Albus raised an eyebrow. "Since when are you so fond of Scorpius? You think he's a dork."

"I don't care if he's a dork, as long as he treats you the way you deserve to be treated," Harry said and ruffled Al's hair when his son smiled sheepishly at him.


	8. Chapter 8

Of all the possible scenarios that could have happened between Albus and Scorpius after the party, the one that happened was the one that Harry expected least: they actually began to spend _more_ time together. Harry didn't expect this because Albus tended to push people away. He had been doing it to he and Ginny since November and Al was only just starting to open up to them.

Scorpius would come over to tutor Albus and then the two would off and disappear someplace together (with his or Ginny's approval, of course). Albus would sometimes come home in time for dinner, and other times he would come back after midnight. Occasionally, Harry would ask Al where it was that he and Scorpius went all the time and every time Al would shrug and say, "The library."

He didn't say anything, but Harry knew this was a lie. Who, besides Hermione, would spend so much time in the library? It bugged him that his son wasn't telling the truth, but decided not to pry. It would be better for both of them if he left it alone. That is, until Albus started going "to the library" every day and Harry began to go mad with curiosity. Where was Al spending all his time and why wasn't he telling him about it? What could Al _possibly_ be doing that he couldn't tell his own father about it?

"You need to stop worrying," Ginny said when he told her. He started to say something, but she held up a hand to silence him. "You're being paranoid. I'm sure that Albus and Scorpius are just going to the library or Diagon Alley or something. Or maybe they actually _are_ going to the library. Did you ever think of that?"

Harry continued to rant for a few more days until Ginny got fed up with it and suggested the possibly most genius thing he had ever heard. Why hadn't _he_ thought of it?

"If you're so concerned that our son is some kind of delinquent, then why don't you ask James to follow him around for a day? Merlin knows how good he is at sneaking around without being detected. If he played his cards right, he could probably make a profession of it."

Harry wrote to his elder son immediately after the conversation with his extremely clever wife and James was quick to agree. Albus left with Scorpius after tutoring the next day and James nonchalantly followed them the entire afternoon. Neither of them ever suspected a thing, he was proud to say.

James reported back to Harry by "coincidentally" dropping in during dinner, five minutes after Albus arrived home. Harry had been anxious all day and finally felt relieved when James arrived with the information. He didn't think he could wait any longer. James excused himself to go to the bathroom and Harry made up a lame excuse about leaving his coffee in his office, and the two departed to some other part of the house. Ginny appeared at their side moments later, having told Albus that she was going to use the bathroom as well.

"What are you doing here?" Harry asked, cocking an eyebrow. "I thought I was being _paranoid._"

She waved a hand in his direction, dismissing him. "Oh, shush. I'm a curious mother, is all." She turned to James. "So, what did you find out?"

"What I saw was truly terrifying," James admitted and Harry's heart clenched. "Mum was right. Albus is actually going to the library." He shuddered.

"Goddamn it!" Harry swore. "Don't do that again, James! You _scared_ me! I thought something horrible had happened!"

James snickered. "_Sorry,_ Nancy. He and Scorpius were doing research on something."

"Did you find out what?" Ginny asked, curiosity sparking in her.

"No! I couldn't exactly go up to them and _ask,_ now could I? Besides, that wasn't what Dad asked me to do. He asked me to find out where Albus is going and I did. My job here is done."

"Oh, no, you're not!" Ginny snapped. "Find out what Albus and Scorpius are doing at the library!"

"But why –?"

"Because I said so, young man, _that's _why! Maybe that will teach you to be a smartass!"

James grumbled under his breath on the way back to the kitchen table. Albus, already nearly done with his meatloaf, looked at the three of them curiously before going back to his food. Harry felt guilty for not believing Al when he said he was going to the library. He also felt guilty for sending James to spy on him _again,_ but he was too curious about Al and Scor's research not to.

James came to Harry and Ginny the next day with news. And this time he wasn't joking about the news being terrible.

"They're researching…" James swallowed nervously.

"Get on with it!" Ginny cried.

"They're researching…_serial killers,_ man."

Harry blinked stupidly. "They're…what?"

"They're going to the library and researching serial killers and child molesters and all that kind of shit! Don't ask me why, I was just a fly on the wall, but it seemed really _weird_ to me. You should have a talk with that Malfoy kid and ask him what he's getting Al into," James suggested, and then quickly departed from the house.


	9. Chapter 9

Harry could admit that maybe he had acted a _little_ recklessly when he stomped over to Malfoy Manor and demanded to know why Scorpius was poisoning his son's mind. It was pure luck that Scorpius's parents weren't home. Harry didn't want to have to deal with Draco if he ever found out that he had come onto his property uninvited and yelled at his son.

Harry had very promptly marched up the front steps, knocked on the door until Scorpius answered the door, and when he did, yelled at him until he couldn't yell any more. Looking back, Harry was ashamed of his behavior and had to apologize to Scorpius many times before the boy would finally stop trembling in his presence. He had shouted until he was blue in the face and demanded to know _why_ he was screwing with Albus.

"I-I'm not, sir! He asked for my help –" Scorpius stammered, but Harry was having none of it. Only when he finally went home and yelled at his own son did he find out that Scorpius had been telling the truth.

"_I_ asked _him_ to help me with my research!" Albus cried exasperated. He honestly didn't know why his father was upset and that only made Harry angrier.

"Why? Why would you want to learn about something so horrible?" Harry shouted.

"Harry, dear, maybe you should calm down," Ginny suggested.

Harry huffed in frustration and collapsed into his favorite chair. He and Ginny had asked Albus to speak to them in the living room and that was when Harry had started shouting. Ginny turned to Albus and calmly repeated Harry's question.

Albus simply shrugged. "I dunno. It interests me."

"What do you mean? How can it 'interest' you? Shouldn't it, I don't know, repulse you?" Ginny asked.

"Yeah, it probably should. And, in some ways, it does. But…" Albus trailed off.

"But what?" Harry pushed.

"It's kind of a long story," Al admitted.

"We've got time."

Al sighed and began to speak, "Adjusting has been hard, okay? I think you guys both know that. I tried to put what happened behind me and move on like you said, but it just wasn't working for me. No matter how much it sucks, what happened…is a part of me. I can't just pretend like it didn't happen. And then…Scorpius got me thinking. What makes people like George do the things they do? What went wrong with them? Was it nature vs. nurture or were they just insane? I wanted to know. I _had_ to know. I asked Scorpius to help me. He was hesitant at first, but when he saw how important it was to me, he agreed. He's been such a good friend to me and I knew that if I could trust anyone with what I was doing, it was him. He's helped a lot, too. He's so smart and helpful and stuff." Al paused to blush. "We started doing a lot of research on psychology. At first, I just wanted to learn about people like George, but then I got kind of…obsessed. I mean, I thought it was _really_ interesting. That's why…when Scorpius has finished tutoring me through school, I want to become an expert in psychology."

"Well…that's very responsible of you, Al," Ginny said, looking impressed. "Your father and I are really glad that you've decided to choose a direction and take control of your life. This is a really important step in your life. But…why did you have to hide it from us?"

Albus stared at her. "What do you mean? I told you I was going to the library. If you had just _asked_ me what I was doing, I would have told you."

Harry groaned and buried his face in his hands. All of his efforts and stress could have been avoided had he just been a responsible parent and asked Albus what he was doing at the library. Maybe he _should_ start listening to Ginny more often.


End file.
